134 REPORT OF THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON FORESTRY. 
not to attempt at first to get three schools?” ‘‘ Yes, but I recom- 
mend that being done eventually.”—“‘ You think that it would be 
better to try and get one good school, with as much opportunity of 
practical experience as you can, and when you got that school full 
to perhaps try some other ; but you would not think of trying to 
start three schools at once?” ‘No; the only institution at this 
moment which gives certificates in forestry is the Highland and 
Agricultural Society. We have students from Cirencester, from 
Downton, and from Glasnevin examined there. There are not 
many candidates, but a beginning has been made, and I should like 
to see progress, and to have other places ultimately.” 
“In your visits to those large forests in Scotland, would you 
describe what opinion you formed regarding the management of 
the works?” ‘I think there are some very good men, shrewd, 
practical, intelligent men. They have not had the training such as 
our men receive on the Continent. They have not been taught 
inorganic chemistry or vegetable physiology ; but for practical work, 
that is to say, converting timber and forming plantations, they are 
very good men. We have had three or four of them in India for 
doing certain work, such as planting, and they did it very well. 
For example, Mr Maclvor, of the Cinchona plantations, and Mr 
Ferguson, of the Teak plantations, did their work very well, though 
they had not had a school to go to.”—‘ They had practical and not 
theoretical knowledge?” “ Yes.”—‘* Would you consider that the 
result of their planting operations was successful as a whole?” 
“Some of them were very successful.” (Mr MacCorquodale of 
Scone is a very good planter.)—‘ Do you think those woods would 
have been better if they had been planted by a highly trained man 
skilled in inorganic chemistry?” “TI think that more produce might 
have been turned outin many places. There are many things which 
have not been utilised as they might have been, but there are some 
exceedingly shrewd and valuable men concerned in the work.”— 
“Then you think that, on the whole, those forests might have been 
better if they had been planted by men having more theoretical 
knowledge?” ‘Yes ; but they are exceedingly good planters.”— 
“Tf they had had a little more theoretical knowledge, they could 
have turned their practical sagacity to better account?” ‘I think 
so, for many of them do wish they had had that. They have read 
what books they have been able to get in their cottages, but having 
had no Forest School to go to, lacked opportunity of improvement.” 
“Do you think that the school of forestry might be made self-sup- 
